Nintendo Switch will overtake PSOne
Nintendo Switch sales are exceptional. During the recent fiscal results, the big N broke all kinds of previous records. The console is selling at such a dizzying pace that, if everything goes as Nintendo expects, it will even surpass PSOne, Wii and PS3 in 2021. With several years of life still ahead.According to the always excellent Wikipedia, the ranking of the best-selling consoles in the world is as follows:
PlayStation 2 155 million Nintendo DS 154 million GameBoy 118.69 million PlayStation 4 115.9 million PlayStation 102.49 million Wii 101.63 million PlayStation 3 87.4 million Nintendo Switch 84.59 million
As we found out this morning by reading the mind-boggling numbers of Nintendo Switch, "Nintendo expects to be able to sell another 26.5 million Nintendo Switches, for 205 million games. For the fiscal year 2022, however, the forecasts speak of 25.5 million consoles for 190 million games."
So, counting in hand, by the end of 2021 (or rather March 2022) Nintendo thinks it has sold 111.09 million consoles. A figure that would make them make a big leap in the standings. It would come in fifth place a stone's throw from PlayStation 4 at 115.9 million (but still growing, given that the console is still distributed worldwide).
Nintendo Switch could become the third best-selling console ever at the end of 2022. At the end of 2022, however, forecasts say 136.59 million consoles, which are worth the third position overall. Very distant are PS3 and Nintendo DS, but given the rhythms of the Switch they may not be entirely out of its reach. Especially if a hardware review were to hit stores, something that would further extend the life of the console.
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Nintendo Switch lifetime sales close in on PS3, Wii, and PlayStation
What just happened? Despite arriving over four years ago, the Nintendo Switch is showing no signs of slowing down. Sales of the hybrid console were up 44% year-on-year to 4.73 million units during the last quarter, pushing its lifetime sales to an amazing 84.59 million.
In its latest financial report, Nintendo revealed it shipped 28.3 million Switch units during the full year, a 37% increase over the 21 million consoles shipped the previous year. That beat Nintendo’s prediction of 26.5 million units, a figure it increased from the prior forecast of 19 million in light of pandemic-induced demand.
The 84.59 million lifetime sales put the Switch in eighth place on the best-selling consoles of all-time list, just ahead of the Xbox 360. That’s an amazing claim for a machine released in 2017; the second-newest consoles in the top 28 are the PlayStation 4 (fourth) and Xbox One (fifteenth), both of which launched in 2013.
Nintendo hopes the Switch will sell 25.5 million units across the next fiscal year, which would move its lifetime sales past the PlayStation 3, Wii, and original PlayStation. The global component shortage could scupper those plans, though.
Switch games also had a great year. The 230 million sales beat expectations by 90 million, and was up 36.8% compared to the 168.72 million from the previous year. Unsurprisingly, Animal Crossing: New Horizons led the way after moving 20.85 million units. Other big sellers include Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (10.62 million units), Super Mario 3D All-Star (9.01 million units), and Ring Fit Adventure (7.38 million units).
Nintendo will be releasing a blue Switch Lite and Miitopia in May. Mario Golf: Super Rush lands in June, while The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD will be here in July. Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Pokémon Shining Pearl are planned for late 2021, and open-world prequel Pokemon Legends: Arceus is set for an “early 2022” release. No word on the rumored 4K-capable, DLSS-supporting new Switch model, unfortunately.